Kent,
Thank You for all of your continued support, and the extensive Forgotten
Hits
coverage.
Going forward, I will keep you and
Forgotten Hits in The Loop as developments take place with The FBI or NTSB
Investigations into the 'The Mason City Iowa Accident February 3, 1959' (The
'Tragic Airplane Crash' that will forever be remembered as 'The Day The Music
Died')
Buddy Holly
- Ritchie Valens - JP Richardson 'The Big Bopper' - The Pilot, Roger
Peterson
Dear Forgotten Hit's -
Buddy Holly Fans,
The following are a
few questions that we received from Fans World Wide regarding the events
of February 3,1959:
1. Why would they knowingly
allow a pilot (Peterson) to fly the plane without certified
instrument training'(night flying)?
Pilot Roger Peterson
was IFR trained ... However He / The Pilot did not need to be Instrument Rated
as The Dwyer Flying Service was ONLY certified by The FAA to conduct passenger
transport under VFR conditions ONLY.
On February 3, 1959,
at 0055Z (departure), the visibility was 6 miles and the ceiling was
6,000 feet, which was well within the VFR / FAA certification that Dwyer
Flying Service operated under.
Pilot Roger Peterson
leveled the Plane off at 800 feet, heading Northwest bound on a 315 heading.
(The Pilot began a witnessed Slow Normal Descent)
a). The landing light
was turned back on
b). The landing gear
was left in the up position
c). The Power switch
(The Magneto Switch) was found in The OFF position (3- keyed notched positions
from ON to OFF)
d). With the nose lowered
slightly, the right wing tip touched the frozen farm field first. (The rest of
the sliding motion was 588 feet until a Tail First Stop against a 9-
strand barb wire fencing.) A normal
landing is 580 feet.
e). The on-site Coroner's report
and the historic documented photos show that 'just a dusting of snow fell from 0055Z until
0930Z '.
2. What about the
imbalance of weight distribution on the plane?
The two heaviest passengers (Valens and Richardson) were seated at the
rear along with an undetermined amount of luggage stacked at the rear, which
may well have caused the planes control to be affected.
Unfortunately, there
was never any documentation of fuel or fueling.
N3794N, a 1947 Beech
Bonanza-35 V-Tail, was equipped with a weight on its front nose wheel area to compensate for any rear passengers
and luggage loading. That being said, depending
on the amount of fueling (after only 3.5 minutes of flight), there was no mention
of fuel, fueling, danger, fuel remaining in the wings, etc. It would appear that N3794N was around 125
pounds in excess of its useful load.
3. This may
be corroborated by the statement made by Dwyer to the
authorities, on whose statement he placed Holly in the rear of the plane,
knowing that he was, in fact, at the front with the pilot which would, of
course, make a significant difference.
N3794N departed, climbed
to 800 feet, leveled off, flew for 3.5 minutes (which included a 'Slow Normal
Descent.') Both propellers were reported
to have broken off at their hubs (indicating
that the engine was operating until that point.) However, the Power Switch (The
Magneto Switch) was reported to have been found in The OFF position. This switch is a 3-keyed notched positions
from ON to OFF, perhaps causing the propellers to be breaking off at their hubs.
4. The weather
reports were sketchy.
There was no “Hollywood
Snow Storm” ... There were six adult witnesses at the airport during loading, taxi,
departure and the aircraft flying back Northwest bound. (ALL six witnesses offered that it was not snowing
and never did.)
FAA reported
visibility of six miles and a ceiling of 6,000 feet - FAA report that only
a dusting fell from 0055Z until 0930Z confirmed by The Coroner's report the
following morning. Historic photos would
depict snow on the frozen field but no snow on the surface of the wreckage,
until the following 0930Z historic photos.
5. The Dwyer's
have had plenty of years to offer another explanation, but have not done so.
This is an extremely
good point ... and this is why we have asked for an FBI investigation.
a). The Dwyers were not
allowed to speak during the 1959 hearings
b). The Dwyers have
concealed information that will prove what really happened in this accident.
The Dwyers have
said: “This is gonna stir things up … and
some folks are not gonna like what I have to say. But you have to
remember: I was the only one there and I kept some of the wreckage. There’s
a reason I still have it. It backs up what really caused this
crash."
In Closing: Thank You so much.
I look forward to your continued
leadership at 'Forgotten Hits'.
Kindest Regards,
L J
L J Coon
Hey Kent,
This one is more like an all week sucker ... lol ... great job, my friend.
Being a pilot, and an A&P mechanic, I sadly understand most of LJ's comments.
This one is more like an all week sucker ... lol ... great job, my friend.
Being a pilot, and an A&P mechanic, I sadly understand most of LJ's comments.
I think he's done an incredible job trying to
sort it all out. It can't be and easy task, even with a fresh accident. I'm
glad you ran that blog.
On another note, Kobe's heli, from what I've heard, was in excellent shape ...
On another note, Kobe's heli, from what I've heard, was in excellent shape ...
I heard the pilot had a special clearance to
fly. The news said LAPD grounded all their birds because the fog was so
bad.
In both cases, it's a terrible shame that lives were lost. They will all be missed greatly.
Partner, try to catch a breath and rest up. I'll be waiting for the next one.
Take care, Bro -
Barry
In both cases, it's a terrible shame that lives were lost. They will all be missed greatly.
Partner, try to catch a breath and rest up. I'll be waiting for the next one.
Take care, Bro -
Barry
Hi Kent,
Enclosed
is a song written by a gentleman from England named Geoff Goddard that ended up
being recorded by a group call Chad Allan & The Reflections from Winnipeg,
Manitoba. I remember hearing it on CKY-Radio 58 when I was a kid.
The song was "Tribute To Buddy Holly" and was a regional hit for the
group. The band would later be named "The Guess Who." and if
you look closely at the photos you will see a very young Randy Bachman, Jim
Kale, and Garry Peterson three years before they invited Burton Cummings to
join the group. This song was recorded four years after the flight that
took the lives of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. "The Big
Bopper" Richardson 61 years ago.
I thought
you, Burton Cummings, Sam Boyd, and others would enjoy the song, the memories,
and photos of Winnipeg back in the day when the city was buzzing with a bevy of
bands!
Also enclosed
is a video that a friend sent to me yesterday about the infamous flight on
"The day the music died!"
Peace,
Tim Kiley
While Don McLean’s “American Pie” is always the song
cited for commemorating “The Day The Music Died,” that didn’t come about until
1972.
Just a few weeks after the plane crash in 1959, Tommy Dee hit
the charts with “Three Stars,” a song mentioning each of the dearly departed by
name. Dee was a DJ at KFXM in San
Bernadino at the time and says he wrote the song right after hearing about the
crash. He took the song to Crest
Records, who paired his narration with the vocals of Carol Kay and the
Teen-Aires.
Dee’s record went to #11 in Billboard. Early Rocker Eddie Cochran also recorded the
song but it wasn’t released until 1966.
(Eddie had a tough time holding it together, having been close friends
with both Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens.)
Sadly, Cochran himself would also die tragically a year later in a car
crash that also injured fellow rocker Gene Vincent.
And, while we’re on the subject of plane crashes (Please,
God, let’s not linger here too long!), Cleopatra Entertainment has just
announced a brand new film promising to tell the true story of the plane crash
that took Lynyrd Skynyrd from us.
Cleopatra Entertainment's
STREET SURVIVORS: THE TRUE STORY OF THE LYNYRD SKYNYRD PLANE CRASH Gets
Official Film Festival Selection and National Release Date
Long awaited biopic about the iconic band’s place crash premieres February 16th at Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival and releases nationwide this June 30th
Long awaited biopic about the iconic band’s place crash premieres February 16th at Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival and releases nationwide this June 30th
Cleopatra Entertainment’s feature
film STREET SURVIVORS: THE TRUE STORY OF THE LYNYRD SKYNYRD PLANE CRASH
has officially been selected for inclusion in the upcoming Hollywood Reel
Independent Film Festival taking place at the Staples Center / LA Live in Los
Angeles from February 12th thru February 27th, 2020. The film will premier
there on Sunday, February 16th at 7:30 pm, and will also have a nationwide
theatrical release starting this Spring.
STREET SURVIVORS: THE TRUE STORY OF THE LYNYRD SKYNYRD PLANE CRASH was
scripted and directed by Jared Cohn (DEVIL’S REVENGE, DEVIL’S DOMAIN), produced
by Brian Perera and co-produced by Tim Yasui for Cleopatra Entertainment. The
biopic recreates the story about the ill-fated flight through the eyes of
former Lynyrd Skynyrd drummer Artimus Pyle (who narrates the film), who not
only survived the plane crash that claimed the life of the band’s founder and
front man Ronnie Van Zant amongst others, but who also physically pulled the
remaining survivors out of the plane wreckage before staggering towards the
nearest farmhouse in rural Louisiana to seek help. Pyle also contributes
original music to the film’s soundtrack.
Says Pyle: “This film’s story – MY story – is not just about the plane crash
but also about my personal relationship with the genius that was Ronnie Van
Zant – whom I loved like a brother and still miss to this day.”
Cleopatra Entertainment’s plans for the roll-out include an international
festival run followed by a domestic theatrical run, including personal
appearances by Artimus Pyle, who will introduce the film an participate in
Q&A’s with the audience. In select markets, Pyle will perform a live music
concert with the Artimus Pyle Band that will feature the hit songs by LYNYRD
SKYNYRD. A worldwide VOD and Home Entertainment release, which will include a
stand-alone Official Soundtrack album, are scheduled for June 30th, 2020.
Plane crashes
took two of my favorite artists of all time.
Rick Nelson died on New Year’s Eve, on the way to a show, in De Kalb,
Texas. Nelson, of course, was quite the
hit maker in the late ‘50’s and early ‘60’s, rivaling Elvis Presley with the
teenage audience of early rock and roll.
He scored a major comeback hit in 1972 with “Garden Party” and toured incessantly
from that point on.
Jim Croce’s
star, on the other hand, was just rising when his plane went down in Natchitoches,
Louisiana, when it crashed into a tree on take off. (Ironically, also on his way to a concert in
Texas.)
I found the news of both crashes absolutely devastating
and still miss both of these artists immensely.
Over the years, a number of artists have met their fate
this way. (Patsy Cline immediately comes
to mind, also cut down in the prime of her career.) As far back as 1944, band leader Glenn Miller
was taken from us this same way. And how
about Otis Redding and up and coming star Aaliyah? John Denver (who ironically wrote the hit “Leaving
On A Jet Plane”) crashed his own plane when it ran out of fuel. While some will argue that it would be
inevitable that we would lose a few famous people this way simply because of
the volume of travel required by each of them in their profession, plane
crashes in general still make up a fairly small percentage of actual
deaths. In nearly all of the cases
mentioned above, these seem to be the result of much smaller, private airfare
on equipment that was typically older and not as well maintained as they should
have been.
Let’s take a moment to remember ALL of the artists we’ve
lost over the years and embrace the joy they brought us through song. (kk)
In other music news, Brian Wilson is asking his fans (and the fans of his
music) to try and help stop a concert that is supposed to go on tonight at The
Safari Club International Convention in Reno, NV.
Wilson tweeted "It has been brought to my
attention that on Wednesday, February 5th, the Beach Boys touring group,
licensed by Mike Love, headlining at the Safari Club International Convention
in Reno, Nevada. This organization
supports trophy hunting, which both Al [Jardine] and I are emphatically opposed
to. There’s nothing we can do personally to stop the show, so please join us in
signing the petition."
The goal was to obtain 75,000 signatures. The petition states that The Safari Club International
Convention will feature "870 companies ... selling trophy hunting holidays
and wildlife body parts, including animal heads, this year." It also notes
that an estimated 20,000 animals from protected species will be killed in
2020, and that "benches made from elephant skin, paintings on elephant
ears, a hippo skull table and shark skin belts" have been sold
at other Safari Club International conventions. It concludes with a letter to Beach Boys
manager Elliott Lott pointing out a pledge to stop purchasing the group's
music, concert tickets and other merchandise if it doesn't pull out of out
of the concert and "publicly state their opposition to this sick ‘sport’
of killing animals for ‘fun.'" (Certainly
not the kind of fun, fun, fun we expect from The Beach Boys … but I guess at
this point a gig’s a gig, right? Right and wrong have nothing to do with
it. While I find it highly unlikely that the band would pull out of this performance this late in the game, at least Brian has managed to get the word out about his feelings on this matter and his total disdain of these proceedings.)
And speaking of Al Jardine, he’s coming back to The
City Winery here in Chicago for another solo show on March 31st.
We had a GREAT time at his concert a couple of years
ago and strongly recommend this show.
